Drape attachment for a standard cap

ABSTRACT

A cloth drape for shading a wearer&#39;s neck and ears includes left and right semi-rigid support members, such as 3-5 mm plastic tubes containing a copper wire, supporting the top edge of the drape. Ends of the support members extend out of the front of the drape and are attached to left and right visor clips. The visor clips are clipped over the side edges of the visor and retain the support members at an angle approximately parallel to the visor edge around the outside of the cap. There is a gap between the support members at the back of the drape to allow tightening of the drape using a cord attached to the support members. To support the drape at the back of the cap, the drape has one or two Velcro strips attached to it that extend around the size-adjustment band in the back of a standard cap.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a shade drape that attaches to a standard cap, where the cap has a visor and an adjustable band, and where the drape covers the wearer's neck and ears.

BACKGROUND

Providing a detachable cloth shade drape for a baseball type cap is known. The drape shades the back of the neck and the ears. A typical design provides a customized cap having

Velcro strips or snaps, and the drape has corresponding Velcro strips or snaps. Such a design is shown in patent publication US 2004/0154074. The problem with such a design is that the user must use the customized cap and cannot use a standard off-the-shelf cap. Further, any drape that attaches inside the cap pushes down on and rubs the wearer's ears, resulting in irritation and noise.

Another type of design provides a drape that frictionally attaches within an inner fold of a headband of a cap. Such a design is shown in patent publication US2004/0244095. However, many types of caps do not have a suitable inner fold.

Another type of drape includes a ring that slips over the top of the cap. Such a design is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,669,074. However, such a design does not provide a reliable attachment to the cap.

Another type of design attaches the drape to the down-facing edges of the cap with metal clips. Such a design is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,081,717. However, the metal clips are uncomfortable and the clips must extend around the cap to keep an adequate shape of the drape.

An ideal design of a detachable drape should allow its use with a standard off-the-shelf cap of any size, be very easy to attach to the cap, be aesthetically pleasing, and retain an optimized shape and position without undo adjustment.

SUMMARY

A flexible cloth drape for shading the wearer's neck and ears includes a semi-rigid plastic tube, or similar type support member, that is attached around the top edge of the drape, such as through a cloth sleeve. The tube may have a diameter of 3-5 mm. The tube extends out of the front of the drape and is attached to a flat visor clip. The visor clip clips to the side edge of the cap visor and retains the tube at an angle parallel to the visor edge. There is a right and left tube portion clipped to the right and left edges of the visor, and there is a gap between the tubes at the back of the drape to allow tightening of the drape. The tubes keep the edges of the drape generally aligned with the visor and the bottom edge of the cap, and the limited flexibility of the tubes allows the drape to contour to the wearer's head by contouring to the outside of the cap.

In another embodiment, the support member is a metal wire or includes a wire within the tube for added rigidity.

An adjustment cord extends from the other ends of the tubes at the back of the drape for allowing the user to pull the ends of the tubes closer to one another for tightening the drape.

To support the drape at the back of the cap, the drape has one or two Velcro strips attached to it that extend around the adjustment band in the back of a standard cap. Therefore, the drape is secured to the cap only by the visor clips and the Velcro strips at the back.

Snaps are provided on the drape for optionally folding up the edges of the drape to expose the side of the wearer's ears, although the drape still provides sun protection of the ears.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of a standard off-the-shelf adjustable cap with the drape attached to it.

FIG. 2 illustrates the drape being folded up and snapped to expose the side of the wearer's ears.

FIG. 3 is a back view of the cap and drape, showing an adjustment cord for tightening the drape.

FIG. 4 shows the inside of the cap and the drape connected to the cap using two visor clips and two Velcro strips securing the drape to the cap's adjustment band in the back of the cap.

FIG. 5 is a close up view of the visor clip, which supports a semi-rigid tube attached to the upper edge of the drape.

FIG. 6 is a close up view of Velcro strips on the drape being wrapped around the adjustment band of the cap.

FIG. 7 illustrates the drape cloth material itself.

FIG. 8 illustrates the various additional parts that are attached to the drape material of FIG. 7 for making the completed drape shown in FIGS. 1-6.

FIG. 9 is a side view of the visor clip.

FIG. 10 illustrates how the semi-rigid tube is secured in the visor clip.

Elements in the various figures that are the same or equivalent are labeled with the same numeral.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 illustrates a standard cap 10 having a visor 12 and a back opening 14 to allow adjustment of the cap size using a size-adjustment band. Standard size-adjustment bands typically include Velcro, snaps, a clamp, or is an elastic material. This type of cap 10 is the most popular type of cap sold. The invention works with any similar type of cap having a visor and a size-adjustment band in the back.

FIG. 1 also shows a cloth drape 16 that is attached to the cap 10 and contours around the bottom edge of the cap 10, which, in turn, contours around the head of the wearer. In the configuration of FIG. 1, the drape 16 extends below the nape of the wearer's neck, to protect the neck from the sun, and covers the wearer's ears. Male and female snaps 18 are provided on both sides of the drape 16 for folding the bottom edge up to expose the sides of the ears yet still provide sun protection. FIG. 2 illustrates the drape 16 with the edges folded up.

The front edge of the drape 16 secures to the edge of the visor 12 with a resilient clip 20, discussed in more detail later.

FIG. 3 shows the back of the cap 10 and drape 16. A cord 22 is attached to the ends of two semi-rigid tubes (not shown) for cinching the drape 16 tight. The tubes are inserted through cloth sleeves at the top edge of the drape 16. A locking mechanism 24 releasably locks the cord 22 in place after the cord 22 is pulled tight.

FIG. 4 illustrate the inside of the cap 10 showing how the drape 16 includes two Velcro strips 26 and 28 that are releasably attached around the size-adjustment band 30 of the cap 10 through the opening 14 in the cap 10 for supporting the back of the drape 16. The entire drape 16 is supported by the visor clip 20, the semi-rigid tube along the top edge of the drape 16, and the Velcro strips 26/28 securing the back of the drape 16 to the cap's size-adjustment band 30. The top edge of the drape 16 is automatically positioned over the bottom edge of the cap 10 by the visor clip 20 and Velcro strips 26/28 so there is no gap for sunlight, and the shape of the drape 16 is maintained. The clip 20 and Velcro strips 26/28 support the top edge of the drape 16 so that it is about ⅝ inch above the bottom edge of the cap 10.

FIG. 5 is a close up view of the visor clip 20. The end of the semi-rigid tube is clamped within the outer edge of the visor clip 20 to keep the tube above the visor 12 and parallel to the visor 12 edge so the front end of the drape 16 is above the bottom edge of the cap 10. With the standard cap 10 and visor 12 angle, the angle of the clip 20 results in the top edge of the drape 16 being slightly angled up with respect to the bottom edge of the cap 10 so as to be clear of the wearer's ears. After the back of the drape 16 is secured to the adjustment band 30 (FIG. 6), the drape 16 is held in place about ⅝ inch above the bottom edge of the cap 10 and fits snuggly around the cap 10.

Some prior art drape designs for caps secure the drape inside the cap. Ears generally extend about ½ inch above where they connect to the head, and the bottom edge of the cap is typically below the top of the ears. Therefore, such prior art drapes press downward against the wearer's ears and create discomfort and noise by pressure and rubbing. Further, the drapes do not hang properly because of the ears. In contrast, the present drape 16 is outside of and above the bottom edge of the cap 10 so does not push down on the ears.

FIG. 6 is a close up view of the Velcro strips 26/28, where the strip 26 has not yet been secured around the size-adjustment band 30 of the cap 10. The middle portions of the Velcro strips 26/28 are secured to the drape 16 by sewing or an adhesive. The opening 14 in the cap 10 allows the bottom edge of the cap 10 to become tighter around the wearer's head without the cap material crimping.

FIG. 7 illustrates the drape 16 material itself. The material may be a flexible natural or polymer cloth and may be a mesh. In one embodiment, the upper edge of the drape 16 include a sewn strip of cloth 36 that creates a sleeve for receiving the semi-rigid tube, shown in FIG. 8.

FIG. 8 illustrates the various parts that are attached to the drape 16 material of FIG. 7 to form the completed drape 16 of FIGS. 1-6. The visor clip 20 is shown in more detail in FIGS. 9 and 10. The clip 20 is approximately 1 inch wide and 1.25 inches long. The clip 20 is made of a thin spring steel and has an opening 38 (FIG. 9) with barbs 39 at the outer edge for retaining the semi-rigid tube 40. In an actual embodiment, there are three barbs 39 that secure the tube 40. If the tube 40 is not rigid enough by itself, a metal rod 42 (a wire stiffener) may be inserted into the tube 40 and then clamped by the opening 38 and barbs 39, as shown in FIG. 10. The rod 42 is bendable to conform to the bend in the cap 10 and helps hold up the drape 16 so that the upper edge of the drape 16 remains approximately parallel with the visor edge. The tube 40 in combination with the rod 42 is generally referred to as a semi-rigid support member, and many other semi-rigid cylindrical or rectangular cords or wires may be used instead. The tubes 40 are about 3 inches long and have an outer diameter of about ⅛ inch. The rods 42 are about 2 inches long and formed of a 0.062 inch diameter copper wire. The wearer may bend the rods 42 to conform to the wearer's head or the rods 42 may be pre-bent by the manufacturer.

The snaps 18, adjustment cord 22, locking mechanism 24, Velcro strips 26/28, and cord grommet 46 (for weight) are also shown. The ends of the cord 22 may be secured within the open ends of the tubes 40 by glue and/or stapling. The cord 22 is stretchable and is about 26 inches long with a diameter of 2 mm.

In another embodiment, only a single semi-rigid support member is used, whose ends are attached to the two visor clips 20. In such an embodiment, the size of the drape is adjustable by positioning the visor clips 20 on the visor 12.

Instead of the Velcro strips 26/28 attaching the drape to the back band of the cap, any other suitable releasable attachment device may be used, such as an elastic device, a hook, a clip, etc.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from this invention in its broader aspects and, therefore, the appended claims are to encompass within their scope all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of this invention. 

1. A shade device comprising: a cap having a visor and a back; a drape releasably attached to the cap, the drape comprising: a drape material configured for shading a wearer's neck and ears from the sun; at least one semi-rigid support member supporting an upper edge of the drape material; a first clip and a second clip attached to ends of the at least one semi-rigid support member, wherein the first clip is clipped to a right edge of the visor and the second clip is clipped to a left edge of the visor, the at least one semi-rigid support member extending towards the back of the cap; and a releasable attachment device secured to a back portion of the drape, the attachment device being releasably secured to the back of the cap, wherein the drape is supported around an outside of a bottom edge of the cap by the first clip, the second clip, the at least one semi-rigid member, and the attachment device.
 2. The shade device of claim 1 wherein the at least one semi-rigid support member comprises a semi-rigid first support member having a first end attached to the first clip and a semi-rigid second support member having a second end attached to the second clip, the shade device further comprising an adjustment cord extending from opposite ends of the first support member and the second support member for cinching the first support member and the second support member around the cap.
 3. (canceled)
 4. The shade device of claim 1 further comprising snaps for folding sides of the drape up to expose the ears of the wearer.
 5. The shade device of claim 1 wherein the first clip and the second clip hold the at least one semi-rigid support member approximately parallel with the edge of the visor and above a bottom edge of the cap.
 6. The shade device of claim 5 wherein the at least one semi-rigid support member comprises a metal wire.
 7. The shade device of claim 6 wherein the at least one semi-rigid support member comprises the wire within a tube.
 8. The shade device of claim 5 wherein the first clip and the second clip each comprises opposing faces of spring steel that resiliently clamp onto the visor, wherein the at least one semi-rigid support member is secured within an opening of the first clip and second clip.
 9. The shade device of claim 1 wherein the cap has a band in the back of the cap, and an opening above the band, wherein the attachment device is configured to be releasably secured to the band in the back of the cap.
 10. (canceled)
 11. The shade device of claim 9 wherein the attachment device comprises one or more Velcro pieces. 